The Pumper's Wife

You and your spouse just bought some land.    Both of you are excited about building and looking at floor plans.    You are dreaming about different flooring and bathroom tiles, while your husband is designing his new shop/outbuilding with built in man-cave.    You find yourself a builder and that’s it!    Right? Well, sort of…. Now I know it isn’t the most exciting thing to consider, but one of the most expensive items in your house when building in the country is your septic system.    You will spend somewhere between $8,000-12,000 depending on the number of bedrooms in the house.    I’m no mathematician, but I doubt you’re spending that kind of money on other appliances.    If you’re going to be writing that big of a check, don’t you think it would be wise to make sure you give this “appliance” some of your planning attention? “What?!” you ask.    “You want me to be more concerned about...

I may be showing my age here, but whenever I talk about septic tank pumping I can't help but think of the old Saturday Night Live skit with Hanz and Franz....they were there to "Pump, YOU UP!"   Now here it is some 20 years later and with this post, I feel like I'm writing to recommend that let Southwick Liquid Waste..."Pump, YOU OUT! "    No matter what may flow through my ever-aging brain, getting your septic tank pumped is an important part of septic maintenance. In the last four weeks, I have covered many different ways to care for or maintain your system.  Many items have been ways to be mindful on a day-to-day basis (water usage, care when flushing, and lateral maintenance).  However, one of the most important things you can do for your system is pump it regularly.  Here’s why… The diagram above shows what an average septic tank contains on a daily basis.  You will see sewage or wastewater comes in from...

Today I will elaborate on the septic system drainfield and the best way to care for it. In the diagram above, you can see all the components of a septic system.  There is a tank and a leachfield/drainfield.  When I talk to customers, many of them are confused as to what makes up a septic system.  I would say many think that all they have is a tank and that is it.  However, the bigger portion of the septic system (and also the most expensive part) is the leachfield/drainfield/lateral field.  This part of the septic system is where the final treatment takes place.  It is also very important to know where your lateral field is located.  If this portion of your system becomes damaged or inhibited in any way, it will ruin the functionality of your septic system. Below are two examples of what is being installed today for lateral fields.  The top picture is an example of EZ Flow lateral.  The lower pi...

Toilet paper has gotten a lot of press lately with its insane disappearing act from grocery store shelves.  Heck, even I have gotten in on the action with all the toilet paper memes!  But I do actually have some important tips to share about this necessary substance that we use to wipe the most disgusting items from our body....have I enticed to you read more?  Great. Though we have all laughed at the toilet paper memes in the past few weeks, toilet paper is no laughing matter when it comes to your septic system.  Believe it or not, using the wrong toilet paper can clog your system and leave you with a HUGE mess.  So, how do you know if you’re using the wrong toilet paper?   Let me help…  Unfortunately, all toilet papers claim to be “septic safe.”  This can be really confusing to the “new to septic” homeowner.  I’m sure all toilet papers will eventually break down once they get to the tank, but here’s...

So, if you read my previous ever-so-eloquently-written-wastewater-post from last week…You’ll notice the first thing I mentioned when avoiding septic system “messes” was WATER USAGE.  Today, I’m going to elaborate on that.     I had written how septic systems are sized according to the number of bedrooms.  It is assumed that there is at least one person per bedroom using approximately 100 gallons of water a day when sizing a system.  Obviously, there is no way to know exactly how much water will be used in the home, but to date this is the most logical way to assume approximate water usage. One thing septic systems are good at, is showing you when you’ve used too much water.  (Think about trying to fit 20 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket…)  Typically, you’ll see standing water over your drainfield first, but sometimes too much water can lead to a back-up in the house as well.  Below, I have listed the ...

It's the beginning of spring and many people are calling to have their septic systems pumped.  We are also seeing more issues with lateral pooling.  Personally, I believe this is due to two things...one is groundwater.  This year, despite the fact that the flooding of 2018-19 is behind us, the water table is effecting some areas that it hasn't in the past.  The second issue is more people being at home all day long using water.  This typically won't be an issue for newer systems, but the older ones are struggling.  (Think of Grandpa's '65 mustang....it ran great in 1965 and even now is fun to take out for a spin, but you wouldn't want to enter it in a NASCAR race....and yet, if you're home all the time and your system is older, that exactly what your septic is feeling like!)  So, with this in mind, here's a quick overview of systems and tips that maybe can help you as you stay home! As I have stated before in previous posts/blogs/articles, so ma...

I don't know about you, but I'm so sick of all the media and reports and everything else in this world! What I'm looking for is something to make me laugh.  Hopefully, this little story will.  I'm not sure of its origin, but I have seen it circulate around.  So today, here's a funny little septic story.  ENJOY! As a guitarist, I play many gigs.  Recently, I was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man.  He had no family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in the back country.  As I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost. I finally arrived an hour late and saw the funeral guy had evidently gone and the hearse was nowhere in sight.  There were only the diggers and crew left and they were eating lunch. I felt badly and apologized to the men for being late.  I went to the side of the grave and looked down and the vault lid was already in place.  I didn't know ...